This heart-stopping video shows the moment an ice climber is engulfed by an avalanche whilst hanging 35 feet off the ground.

Intrepid Pierre Chauffour was scaling up a sheer mountain face in the French Alps when tons of snow fell overhead.

Caters

Snow joke:

Intrepid Pierre Chauffour was scaling up a sheer mountain face in the French Alps when tons of snow fell overhead.

Fortunately the Frenchman was protected from the full brunt by an icicle-covered overhang. Despite being trapped in the 60 second-long snow fall, Pierre escaped completely unscathed.

Pierre, from Grenoble, France, said: "It was one of the most stressful things I've ever been involved in.

"At its worst, I could barely breathe for a good few seconds.

"Even though I couldn't see it, I heard the snow breaking above me as I was descending down the rope.

"It took five seconds before the blast hit me.

"The snow had been falling really heavily, and the strong winds made it really likely.

"Fortunately, the overhang protected me from the full force.

"After the avalanche had stopped I just burst out laughing.

"It was a sudden release of the stress and the adrenaline."

Patrice had been climbing in the spot with his friend Gaetan Raymond, while they filmed a short movie.

The pair had been scouting out an undiscovered route and found a new secret ascent an hour and a half away from Grenoble.

Pierre said: "Just before starting to climb the line I chose, we were struck by a first avalanche. "That first one covered us, putting something like 30cm of fresh snow in a blink of an eye all around us. "I didn't want to waste the day by not doing a climb.

"I thought I would be protected from another avalanche by the harness. "What a mistake."